Do you age differently in space?

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asked May 6, 2022 in Science by Penuspenus (680 points)
Do you age differently in space?

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answered May 11, 2022 by GrahamPolk (4,520 points)
In space you do age differently.

In space you tend to age a bit faster than you age on earth.

In space, people usually experience environmental stressors like microgravity, cosmic radiation, and social isolation, which can all impact aging.

Studies on long-term space travel often measure aging biomarkers such as telomere length and heartbeat rates, not epigenetic aging.

Life in space is similar to life on earth however if yo go out into space you have to wear a space suit and other times you have to be in the space shuttle and there's also no gravity to hold you down.

Space is very dangerous – and without protection, people would not be able to survive there.

In space, there's no air – so you couldn't breathe. It's cold – so you'd freeze.

And there's lots of nasty radiation (from the Sun, and from the rest of the Universe), so you'd get really, really bad sunburn.

The only significant differences from living on Earth are that they operate in the confined space of the Space Shuttle orbiter cabin and that they, and all objects inside the cabin, float.

Because of microgravity on the Space Shuttle, some jobs, like handling tools and fluids, become more difficult.

There have been several people that have died in space.

There have been at least 18 deaths in space which include preparation for entry in space and those in space and some on return to earth from space.

A total of 18 people have lost their lives either while in space or in preparation for a space mission, in four separate incidents.

Given the risks involved in space flight, this number is surprisingly low.

The remaining four fatalities during spaceflight were all cosmonauts from the Soviet Union.

As of March 2021, in-flight accidents have killed 15 astronauts and 4 cosmonauts, in five separate incidents.

Three of them had flown above the Kármán line (edge of space), and one was intended to do so.

No Soviet or Russian cosmonauts have died during spaceflight since 1971.

Remains are generally not scattered in space so as not to contribute to space debris.

Remains are sealed until the spacecraft burns up upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere or they reach their extraterrestrial destinations.

What happens if someone dies in space?

10 seconds of exposure to the vacuum of space would force the water in their skin and blood to vaporize, while their body expanded outward like a balloon being filled with air.

Their lungs would collapse, and after 30 seconds they would be paralyzed—if they weren't already dead by this point.

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